Helen Comperatore, the widow of Corey Comperatore, who was shot and killed at a campaign rally in Butler, Pennsylvania, by a bullet intended for President Trump last July, has no love lost for the Secret Service.
“I think the Secret Service is garbage,” she told The Post. “All I’ve wanted this entire time was to sit down with the men who screwed up that day and find out why. Why? Why at that rally? Why at that one in Butler?” she asked incredulously.
“Why that day? Why Butler? Why were you such a mess in Butler? Were you told to be a mess? Were you told by someone not to do your job? You do your job every other time, why that day?”
The agency’s response to the July 13, 2024, assassination attempt drew widespread condemnation from both sides of the aisle, ultimately resulting in then-director Kimberly Cheatle stepping down from her post in disgrace.
On Thursday, nearly a year to the day after the botched security operation, six agents working the rally were suspended from duty.
Corey Comperatore, 50, who served as the fire chief for Buffalo Township, was struck by a bullet fired by would-be assassin Thomas Matthew Crooks, who wounded then-candidate Donald Trump from the rooftop of a building near the rally stage.
His sister, Dawn Comperatore Schafer, said her brother died a hero while trying to protect his daughter when the gunfire rang out during Trump’s speech.
Comperatore’s daughter, Allyson, at the time called her father “the best dad a girl could ever ask for,” as she mourned his sudden death.
Asked about what she’d say to Crooks’ parents, Matthew and Mary, who have yet to issue a formal statement nearly a year after the assassination attempt, Helen put forth a barrage of questions.
“I want to know why if they knew he had mental issues and he was spiraling like they say, ‘why didn’t they go get him help?’ If my kid lived in my house and he barely spoke to me and they knew that he had issues and he was going downward, why did they let him leave with a gun that day?”
After losing her husband so suddenly and tragically, the widow said she’s changed her outlook, and has “learned to embrace every moment” in life.
“I’m kinder, I don’t have an ounce of hate in my body. I refuse to be angry other than … the Secret Service and that stuff. I don’t let anger bother me. The world is too short for that,” she said.
“I miss my husband more than anything in this world. It’s a tragedy, and it should have never happened. I wish he was here.”
The family is having a motorcycle ride on July 12 to commemorate her late husband, followed by a concert in Russellton, Pennsylvania, about 23 miles south of Butler where he lost his life.
“It’s all in honor of Corey. We hope everyone comes out and shows him the love,” his wife said.
She described him as “a wonderful man” and said he is “very missed.”
Helen said she received a warm letter from President Trump last month.
“He did send me a letter in June just checking in. He sent me some photos from the day and it was just a beautiful letter saying our families will always be connected and that if I ever need anything to please reach out.”
